Russian politician claims to have obtained a list of Russians who will be included on new US sanctions list

Saturday, January 13, 2018 4:00:50 PM

Russian politician Oleg Mitvol claims that he has a list of high-ranking Russian officials and businessmen close to the top leadership of Russia who may be subject to US sanctions, reported Dozhd TV.

Mitvol claims that the list was provided by his source in diplomatic circles. He added that he is worried about the situation since he is a client of Sberbank, which was included in the list. Now, the bank could lose access to card services or the ability to borrow or transfer money, Mitvol’s source claims. However, such a move would require a tacit decision from the US Treasury.

Mitvol noted that this version of the list is not final; it was drafted a week ago and may yet be expanded in the future.

Overall, the list provided by Mitvol contains 568 entries. A large part of them is occupied by large Russian banks and their subsidiaries. These include VTB, Sberbank, Bank of Moscow, Vnesheconombank, Rosselkhozbank, Roseximbank, Globex, Prominvestbank and many others.

Also on the list are many state oil and gas companies, including subsidiaries of Rosneft and Gazprom. There are also companies related to the defense industry, including Rosoboronexport, Aviapriborostroenie and Orion. Among the listed private companies are Surgutneftegaz, belonging to Vladimir Bogdanov, and Novatek owned by Leonid Mikhelson. Also in the list provided by Mitvol there is a business entity named Wagner Private Military Company.

The list includes many of those who were already under US sanctions, as well as those who are connected with the war in Ukraine and the annexation of the Crimea, particularly Viktor Yanukovych, his son Oleksandr and former Prime Minister of Ukraine Mykola Azarov. Also, Viktor Medvedchuk, compadre of Russian President Vladimir Putin, is included in the list (Putin is the godfather of Medvedchuk's daughter).

Among the individuals there are many of those who are associated with Vladimir Putin such as Petr Kolbin, whom the media previously called Vladimir Putin's longtime friend. The list also includes businessmen Arkady, Boris and Roman Rotenberg, and Kirill and Yuri Kovalchuk.

Earlier, the Russian newspaper Kommersant, referring to sources in Washington, reported that the US administration is working on a "Kremlin report" for the Congress, which may involve about 50 high-ranking officials and businessmen close to the top leadership of Russia.